About this service
When to contact us
What the work includes
Related pages
Understand it first, then decide what to treat
A damp patch can come from very different places: moist indoor air settling on a cold wall, a window reveal that loses more heat than the rest of the room, a pipe weeping behind the tiles, or water that got in months ago and is still working its way out. From the outside, several of those look almost the same.
That is why this service does not start with a treatment. It starts with a visit to look at the area properly with instruments — a thermal imaging camera, a moisture meter and, if needed, a borescope: how surface temperature is spread across it, where the coldest spots are, and whether the pattern follows a corner, a beam, the outline of a window or the likely route of a pipe. With those readings, plus what can be seen and what you tell us, the next step is decided on much firmer ground than a single photo.
If the case is already clear — visible condensation mould in a bedroom, say — there is no need for an inspection visit. Photos are usually enough, and you can go straight to mould removal. An inspection is worth it when the real question is “where is this coming from?”
What a thermal camera measures — and what it doesn’t
Thermal imaging measures surface temperature: the infrared radiation each point of the wall gives off, turned into a colour image with temperature values. We use a professional camera (testo 868s) that records a thermal image and a normal photo of the same spot, so the two can be compared and documented.
That makes differences visible that the eye cannot see. A damp area often reads slightly cooler than its surroundings because evaporating water cools the surface; thermal bridging shows up as a cold band following a column, a slab edge or a window frame. But to be clear: the camera does not measure the moisture inside a material, the humidity of the air or the dew point. What it shows are temperature patterns consistent with one cause or another, which have to be read in context.
Conditions matter too. Thermal images of a flat read best when there is a temperature difference between inside and outside, so in Barcelona the colder months usually give clearer images. Sun on the façade, heating that has just come on, and reflections on glass or glazed tiles can mislead if nobody accounts for them — separating a real signal from a reflection is part of the job.
The other instruments on the visit
The thermal camera is where the inspection starts, not the whole of it. Depending on the case, the visit combines:
- A professional moisture meter. This is the main instrument for moisture in materials: it gives a reading where it is applied, so the affected area can be compared with a sound wall of the same material, or an old mark checked to see whether it is still damp. Readings depend on the measuring method and the material — plaster, brick, mortar, wood and emulsion paint do not respond the same way — so they are read as comparisons, not as an exact percentage of water in the whole wall.
- An endoscopic camera (borescope). Used to look inside an accessible void — a suspended ceiling with a hatch, a boxed-in cavity, an opening that already exists — without opening anything up. It shows what is in that particular cavity; it cannot prove there is no mould in places it does not reach. We do not open or drill anything without agreeing it with you first.
- Chemical indicator strips and other supplementary checks, where they are relevant to the case. Each strip indicates only the parameter it is made for; they are supporting checks on site, not accredited laboratory analysis.
None of these instruments identifies a mould species, and neither does looking at it: that needs sampling and a laboratory, which we do not do. What we do document is where the mould is, how far it extends, the state of the surface and the damp and temperature conditions that favour it.
Who carries out the inspection
The inspection is carried out by Artyom, who has completed specific training in damp and mould diagnosis. What is found on the visit is set out in the written report.
When an inspection is worth it
These are the situations where an inspection visit usually tells us more than photos:
- a mark that comes back in the same place after cleaning, treatment or repainting
- damp on a wall nowhere near a bathroom or kitchen, with no obvious source
- a corner or window reveal that marks every winter, and you want to know whether it is a cold spot in the building
- a ceiling stain after a neighbour’s leak was fixed, and you are not sure the problem has stopped
- a musty smell without a clear mark, or several rooms affected at once
- before paying for expensive damp-proofing work that someone has quoted you for, when you want a second reading first
If it is only steamed-up windows and a small mark that has just appeared, start with condensation mould — watching the room for a few days is often enough.
Photos on WhatsApp or an inspection visit
| Photos on WhatsApp | Inspection visit | |
|---|---|---|
| What is assessed | What is visible: appearance, size, location, state of the paint | The visible surface, its temperature across the whole area, moisture readings on the materials and, where useful, accessible cavities |
| What it is for | Sorting the case and deciding whether it fits our work | Telling apart causes that look alike, and seeing the real extent before any work |
| Limit | Cannot show what is happening beyond the surface | Cannot see everything inside a wall and does not replace a plumber, a roofer or a laboratory |
| Outcome | A WhatsApp reply with the next step | An explanation on site and a written inspection report |
The two work together: we almost always start with photos, and suggest a visit only when it will change the decision.
What happens on the visit
- Background. You tell us the story: when it appeared, whether it comes back, what has been tried, and any leaks, building work or new windows. Where it is accessible and relevant, we also look at the next room, the façade or the flat above.
- Walk-round with the instruments. We look at the affected area and its surroundings — not just the stain — comparing it with sound walls of the same material, and record thermal images, normal photos and moisture readings at the spots that matter; an accessible cavity worth seeing is checked with the borescope.
- Reading on site. We explain the patterns we saw and what they suggest: a cold spot tied to the building’s geometry, a pattern following a service run, a surface still colder than its surroundings after a leak, or nothing remarkable.
- Next step. What we can treat, what another trade should check first, and what is best simply watched.
The written inspection report
The visit ends with a written report, for yourself, your landlord, the comunidad or whoever will do the work. It sets out what we found and what we recommend; depending on the case and the scope agreed before the visit, it can include:
- the areas checked and why they were chosen
- normal photos and thermal images of those areas
- moisture-meter readings and, where used, borescope images
- the date, time and conditions of the visit (approximate indoor and outdoor temperatures, sun, heating)
- the temperature patterns observed and where they are
- the risk areas identified, such as cold junctions or surfaces with patterns consistent with damp
- what the inspection could not check, and why
- the causes consistent with what was observed, without claiming more than was measured
- the recommended next step and which trade it belongs to
It is a descriptive technical document to help you understand and explain the case. It is not an expert witness report (informe pericial), it is not a certificate, and it carries no legal or insurance standing of its own; if you need an expert report for a claim, that is signed by a qualified expert (perito) or a professional registered with their Spanish professional body.
What this service is not
- It is not leak detection or plumbing: if there are signs of a leak, the outcome is a recommendation that a plumber (fontanero) or leak-detection company checks it, with what we already know.
- It does not certify that a wall has dried out after a leak: the camera helps show whether an area still behaves differently, but drying is confirmed with time and other checks.
- It is not a building-regulation calculation: Spain’s building code (CTE) deals with thermal bridging and surface condensation at design stage, and an inspection of a flat is not that calculation.
- It is not laboratory mould testing, species identification or air-quality sampling.
- It is not damp-proofing, injection treatment for rising damp, façade work or structural repair.
Where we work
We do inspection visits in Barcelona and across the same area as our other services: the metropolitan area (including Cornellà de Llobregat, Sant Boi de Llobregat, L’Hospitalet and Badalona), the Vallès and both stretches of coast. Outside the city we confirm availability once we have seen the photos.
How to ask on WhatsApp
Send two or three photos — a wide shot of the room, a close-up of the area and, if you can, the wall or ceiling around it — and tell us briefly:
- exactly where it shows (outside wall, corner, beside a window, ceiling, low on the wall)
- whether it comes back every winter or after painting
- whether there has been a leak, and whether it has been repaired
From that we can tell you whether photos are enough or whether an inspection visit will actually add something.
